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“Sizing up the Enemy” Date: 12/4/18 Our Prayer: Let’s Pray Heavenly Father, Your warrior prepares for battle. Today we claim victory over Satan by putting on the whole armor of God! We put on the girdle of truth! May we stand firm in the truth of Your Word so we will not be a victim […]

The Spiritual Warfare Weapons Date: 11/25/18 Introduction: Let’s Prayer: Heavenly Father, Your warrior prepares for battle. Today we claim victory over Satan by putting on the whole armor of God! We put on the girdle of truth! May we stand firm in the truth of Your Word so we will not be a victim of […]

October 1 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise… But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine […]

Bible Study

Many of our modern words like genes, genetics, generations, and genealory, come from the same root word as Genesis, meaning origin or creation. The book of Genesis reveals our beginnings. Here we have the beginnings of the universe, of the human race, of sin; the beginning of God’s program of redemption and of the Jewish people, who were the ones through whom God would bring the Messiah into the world.

The first eleven chapters of Genesis focus on primeval history, while the rest of the book gives patriarchal history-the story of Abraham and his descendants. Genesis 1 through 11 describes four great events: The Creation, the Fall, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel, while Genesis 12 through 50 tell of four great persons-Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.

The book of Genesis sets the stage for the entire biblical story and provides foundational lessons for us. As we read Genesis, we’re reminded that no matter what life brings or how evil intrudes. God has a plan, and His ultimate plan cannot be frustrated. Many of the events recorded in Genesis permanently affected life on earth. Yet in spite of those epic events, God’s plan remained on schedule. We can trust His ability to make sense of our lives even if our world appears to be upside down. When we read the book of Genesis, we’re reminded that our Creator-God is sovereign and He is always in control-from beginning to end, from Genesis to Revelation.

Key Thought:

God is the origin of all things-the universe, the earth, life, humanity, the Jewish people, and the plan of redemption.

Key Verse:

“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

Like this:

Lord, above all other names, we worship Yours. We meditate on Your holiness, your perfection, and it brings us to our knees. We love You, God, for Who You are and we thank You for who You are helping us to become. As we study this lesson help us to come into You presence so we can meditate on Your Word, and walk upright for Your glory. We desire to live a godly life before You and others. Let the words of our mouth, and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight always, in Jesus’ name. Thank You that You make Your Word a lamp to our feet, and light unto our path, so we can see You always. Teach us Holy Spirit what we need today to be like Jesus. AMEN.

Subject Lesson: Meditation on the Word of God.

Let’s recap and then study more on meditation on the Word of God.

The psalmist said, “When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches” (Ps. 63:6). Meditation includes reading Scripture, thinking about it, seeking to apply what God says, asking Him questions, and surrendering any issues He brings to mind. It’s like looking in the mirror of God’s Word to see what He says, but then looking beyond the mirror to see Him. As we focus on the Lord, worries and concerns drift away, and our minds are freed from the contamination of the things that do us no good. Psalm 119:133 should be our prayer: “Establish my footsteps in Your word, and do not let any iniquity have dominion over me.” Meditation keeps us alert and sensitive to whatever God wants to do in our lives. That’s why it’s so important to set aside a time to be alone with Him in His Word. As we read and think about what the Lord says, He speaks to our hearts. If we want God to fill our minds with His Word, we must guard against letting the world dominate our thoughts. It’s easy to be occupied from morning until evening with the things of this world without giving much thought to God. However, taking time to be alone with the Lord to meditate on His Word is essential if we want to live a godly life. Each day we must choose whether to carry the Lord or the world with us.

Six Steps to Meditating on the Bible:

1. Meditate to Focus

I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. (Psalm 119:15) Whether we read the Bible in the morning, over our lunch break, or before bed at night, our schedules and responsibilities tend to assail us with distractions. In fact, distractions are a tool the enemy of our souls uses to take our eyes off Christ and to keep us from hearing God clearly in his Word. Aleph says in Psalm 119 that he fixes his eyes on God’s ways. As wayward humans with many pursuits, temptations, and people vying for our attention, we are greatly helped by meditation, which leads us to fix our eyes on the Lord and tune out distractions…even if only for five or ten minutes. Focusing on what we are reading in the Bible provides usclarity when we enter into prayer.

Meditate to focus on how God is speaking to you through his living and active Word.

2. Meditate to Understand

Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous works. (Psalm 119:27)

When we meditate on the Word of God, we seek to understand how the God of the universe is speaking: about himself, about our world, and about our own hearts. We can begin our Bible reading by praying along with the Psalmist, “Make me understand your way!” God delights to answer this prayer.

Some questions to ask during meditation include: Why is this passage important? What do I need to know? What does it say about God? What does it say about me? How does this reading point to Jesus?

Meditate to understand what God is communicating to you through his Word.

3. Meditate to Remember

I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. (Psalm 143:5)

The whole Bible is one grand story thatall the way through points to Jesus Christ. When we meditate on Scripture, we do so to remember all that God has done in his great redemption story and how he sent Christ to save a people from their sin. We ponder the work of God’s hands.

Remembering in meditation may also bring us to ponder all that God has done in our own lives: how he saved us in Christ, what opportunities he is giving us to share the Good News with others, and what we have learned about who God is throughout our days.

Meditate to remember all that God has done through the gospel of grace.

4. Meditate to Worship

…but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. (Psalm 1:2)

Once we have meditated to focus, understand, and remember, we will find our hearts inclined to worship! So we pause in meditation to lift our gaze to the excellencies of Jesus Christ, to take our eyes off the world, and to express to him thanksgiving and adoration when we pray. Meditation leads to delight when the Holy Spirit inclines our hearts to understand how glorious our God is.

Because of sin and its effects, there will be times when our hearts do not feel like delighting in the reading of the Bible. During these moments, the temptation is to stop reading, lose focus, and move on to other activities. So meditation is also keys to exhorting our hearts to delight in God’s Word, which is necessary for our spiritual strength and joy!

Meditate to worship the God who deserves all our thanks and praise for who he is and what he has done in Christ.

5. Meditate to Apply

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. (Joshua 1:8)

Finally, we are better able to understand how to apply God’s Word to our lives when we slow down to meditate on it. In meditating to understand we ask, What do I need to know? Here, in applying what we read, we ask, What do I need to do?

Here’s a brief example. Let’s say you are reading Titus 3:3-4:

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray…But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy…

From this passage, you might be led to confess specific ways you have gone astray or been disobedient; you might praise God for providing his undeserved loving kindness in Christ for you; and you might ask for his help in loving someone who has hurt you with the mercy you’ve received in Christ Jesus.

Our desire in meditation is to “be careful to do according to all that is written” in the Bible. Then, we bring these points of application to God in prayer, asking for spiritual strength to obey, forsake sin, humble ourselves, and walk worthy of our calling in Christ.

Meditate to apply what you have read in the Bible to your daily life and to ask for help in prayer.

6. Meditate by the Spirit

It is no accident that the Bible often speaks about the value of meditation and its purposeful placement before the act of prayer. Consider that our time in the Word is like running a race: Meditation is the warm-up, and prayer is our sprint to the finish line. We cannot be effectual in our praying apart from engaging in the warm-up of meditation.

So what do we do when meditation seems impossible, when our focus is affected by outside circumstances and our hearts feel dulled to God’s Word?

We ask for and cling to God’s gracious help, poured out through the Holy Spirit, and if we’ve not meditated before today, we realize it is never too late to begin! For it is the Spirit who helps us in our weakness, fixing our eyes on Christ, giving us understanding, bringing to mind God’s wonderful works, filling us with joy, and leading us to walk in the truth. He is our great help and hope that we are never alone when we seek God through meditation, and he effectively prompts us to pray in response.

How can I meditate on Scripture?

How to Meditate on Scripture:

Letting the Word of God dwell in our lives is a good way to meditate.

The words of Scripture are living words. (See Hebrews 4:12.) They contain eternal wisdom held in the shell of human words. God wants us to “break open” these human words and begin to discover the rich wealth of personal application and understanding that they hold. This goal can be accomplished as you memorize and meditate on Scripture.

The Apostle Paul said, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you [live in you] richly in all wisdom” (Colossians 3:16). Meditation on Scripture will cause Scripture to “dwell in you” and become a source of wisdom in your mind, will, and emotions.

Remember, meditation cannot be done in a hurry. It takes time. Doing studies on the meaning of a passage and committing it to memory prepare you to meditate on it. As you meditate, the Holy Spirit will teach you the ways of God through His Word. (See John 16:13.) Use the following keys to meditation:

Worship God in Your Spirit

Your times of meditation should be times of worship and fellowship with God. Worship God in your spirit as you quote God’s Word back to Him. Reverence God’s Word and purpose to “do according to all that is written therein” (Joshua 1:8).

Personalize the Passage

Turn the Scripture into a first-person prayer back to God. Personalize it by putting it in the first person, using I, me, and my. For example, Colossians 3:16 (quoted above) could be personalized by saying, “Let the word of Christ dwell in ME richly in all wisdom.” When you put Scripture in the first person, it becomes a living expression within your heart, which is one aspect of meditation.

Give Attention to Each Word of Each Verse

Focusing on one verse at a time, quote it to the Lord, pondering each word. With each recitation of a verse, emphasize a different word. For example, if you are meditating on John 3:16, you would emphasize a different word each time you repeated the passage:

“For God so loved the world … .”

“For God so loved the world … .”

“For God so loved the world … .”

“For God so loved the world … .”

“For God so loved the world … .”

“For God so loved the world … .”

Be attentive. This simple method of meditation will reveal new insights and give you greater understanding of phrases and sentences. As you hear the words of the passage, you will discern nuances and associations that are often overlooked when the passage is read silently.

“Martin Luther, one of the pivotal figures of church history, gave detailed instructions on how to meditate … . ‘You should meditate not only in your heart, but also externally, by actually repeating and comparing oral speech and literal words of the book, reading and rereading them with diligent attention and reflection, so you may see what the Holy Spirit means by them.’ ” (Doug McIntosh, God Up Close: How to Meditate on His Word, Moody Press, Chicago, Ill., 1998, 65.)

Illustrate the Main Concepts Found Within the Passage

As you memorize and meditate on a passage, look for Biblical concepts and patterns. Sometimes drawing simple illustrations with stick figures and symbols can help you remember the main ideas of the passage. Not only will the actual creation of the illustration help you further meditate on the meaning of the passage, but your illustration can serve as a simple summary of what the Lord taught you through meditation on His Word.

Each illustration should represent your current understanding of the action being described in the verse or phrase. As your understanding of the verse deepens, your illustrations will expand.

Meditate on Scripture as You Go to Sleep at Night

One of the most critical times to meditate on God’s Word is as you go to sleep each night. In Scripture, there are many references to meditating on Scripture at this time. (See Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:2, 63:6, and 119:148.)

The quiet moments of preparing for sleep offer an ideal setting for contemplation and fellowship with the Lord. The thoughts that are on your mind as you go to sleep will be in your subconscious mind all through the night. They will strongly influence your attitudes the next day, consciously or subconsciously.

Respond to God as He Teaches You

As you meditate, don’t be discouraged if you have to go over the passage several times before insights begin to come to mind. As God reveals an insight to you, pray it back to Him and ask Him for the grace to apply that truth in your life. If the Holy Spirit convicts you of sin in your life, confess it to the Lord and be forgiven.

Week #3

Questions:

1). What do meditation includes?

2). What drift away when we focus on God’s Word?

3). Name some steps to meditating on the Bible.

4). With a few words explain how to meditate on Scripture.

5). How do we personalize a Scripture?

6). Read Joshua 1:8

7). Give a Scripture you can illustrate personally.

8). How will the Scriptures greatly affect you if you mediate before you go to bed?

9). If the Holy Spirit convict you what should you do?

10). What do we do when meditation seems impossible, when our focus is affected by outside circumstances and our hearts feel dulled to God’s Word?

God’s Coming Kingdom on the Earth In thumbing through history’s pages, one must remain at length in the reading of the fabulous nineteenth century—better known as the Victorian Era—for it was in this period, under the reign of Queen Victoria, that the British Empire came to its great expansion through colonization. This was, in truth, the Golden Age. Scientific accomplishments gave impetus to the times, and science began to prophesy that it would bring in a new world order, a new age. Out of so promising a background, the twentieth century was born in high hopes and aspirations. Perhaps there was never a more propitious time for high ideals and dreams than the opening of the twentieth century. With a fanfare of trumpets, it moved upon the scene. Optimism was the dominant note of the hour. Man was going forth in that day as a knight clad in shining armor. “Onward and upward forever” was the catch phrase of the new day. Just around the comer was the millennial kingdom—coming to pass ipso facto—for man had willed it and had made the world a glorious place! Now the church, quick to catch the spirit of the age and permeated with this leaven of false hope, spoke bravely of converting the world. In the writings of the year 1901 lies an interesting bit of reading on the Lord’s Prayer. Listen to this kind of daydreaming: The Prayer, thus taught us, gives faith and hope that His kingdom is coming. The sun’s dawning rays on the mountain tops are the assurance that the perfect day will come. The best things in individuals and in nations, increasing each decade, are proof of their final prevalence!1 Further, we note that the Student Volunteer Movement of 1912 had as its motto: “The World for Christ in this Generation.” In later years, a minister identified with this movement told me, “It is hard for me today to realize that at that time we actually believed that the world would be won for Christ within the next few years.” There was a great missionary emphasis in the early part of the twentieth century. Africa, China, and Japan were open fully to the gospel, and inroads were made for the cause of Christ everywhere throughout the world. About that same time, a Peace Conference was held at The Hague in Holland. At this conference men wore little ploughshares made out of swords upon the lapels of their coats. “There will never be another war,” they said. “There will be a warless world—we are coming into a new day.” It is difficult for us today to relate to the thinking of men in that day. Postmillennialism was in the saddle, and riding mankind was a push towards “building the kingdom.” In fact, the church was made synonymous with the kingdom in that day. But frankly, any suggestion of the coming of Jesus Christ would have been a source of great embarrassment, as His coming would only have interfered with the accomplishments of men, holding up the glorious program they had for self-improvement of the race. Men who were premillennial and did speak of the coming of Christ were looked down upon—they were considered strange individuals. And strange seemed the messages of such men as Dr. Brooks, Dr. Wilbur Chapman, Dr. Morehouse and Dr. Torrey. In his introduction to Dr. W. E. Blackstone’s little book, “Jesus is Coming,” Dr. Torrey stated how difficult it was to preach the precious hope in days when popular opinion would have agreed 1 Author unknown. 14 that the sweeping successes of man would surely bring in the kingdom. But there has come a great change! In the race today, all the way from statesman down to the humblest ranks, people are disappointed, discouraged, distraught, and disillusioned. What has happened since the dawn of the twentieth century? An inventory includes wars the likes of which the world had never seen. A worldwide depression swept over us, and today a godless ideology threatens Christianity. Science is no longer the savior of the race but the destroyer. In the world of the spiritual, postmillennialism is as dead as a dodo bird. You will not find on the topside of the earth today a reputable theologian who is postmillennial. Now that does not mean that they have become premillennial—they have not. They have become amillennial. They have given up the idea of the Millennium altogether because they have come to the conclusion that they are not getting the contract from God to build the kingdom of heaven here upon this earth. Your Kingdom Come… An idealistic character in Robert Browning’s poem, “Pippa Passes,” sings forth the spirit of the nineteenth century: The year’s at the spring And day’s at the morn; Morning’s at seven; The hillside’s dew-pearled, The lark’s on the wing; The snail’s on the thorn: God’s in his heaven All’s right with the world! But in our present day I fear we shall have to turn to Shakespeare’s Hamlet for a summary of our age of confusion. It is there that we find the line, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” There is something definitely wrong in this world in which we live. In spite of that, however, men are still talking bravely about building the kingdom. But, my friend, they are conducting a bankruptcy sale on a new world order and a fire sale on a new social order. I am of the same opinion as Dr. George Guille who said that it seems as if the church is in the business of making the world a better place for men to go to hell in. Yes, the church was engaged, and feverishly so, in its program for making the world religious when it suddenly became infatuated with an idea that greatly expanded its program—namely, that the church could and would bring the kingdom of God here on this earth. Now this term “kingdom” causes, I suppose, more confusion than any other term in Scripture. What meaning is wrapped up in that word? I do not want to appear too dogmatic where good men differ, but there are certain basic principles that we can state. And I would like the liberty of making this personal observation. For years I thought that the Old Testament and the Epistles were difficult since they contained doctrine. But I thought the Gospels were simple and, in a measure, quite easy to comprehend. May I say to you that I have arrived at the conclusion that the Old Testament and the Epistles are simple, while the most difficult portion of the Word of God is the Gospels! It is in the Gospels that we find the theme song, “The Kingdom.” “Pippa Passes,” part I, lines 221-228 Hamlet, act 1, sc. line 90 15 Now if I can make clear to you something of what this kingdom means, it will help you, I believe, more than any other one thing to get a correct perspective of the Word of God and of life. Basically, mention of the kingdom lies in the Old Testament. When John the Baptist appeared with the Lord Jesus Christ, they began with the message: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Now, neither the Lord Jesus nor John explained it; neither shed any light upon it in the sense of attempting to define it. This argues that the people to whom they were speaking understood what they meant. It is that kingdom which, at first, had been vouchsafed to David, of which God said to him, “I’ll bring One to sit on your throne, I’ll bring the Messiah, and He will reign in righteousness and justice and peace on this earth” (see 2 Samuel 7:12-17). The prophets took up this song and sang it in the dark hours of the night. A day was coming when Jerusalem would become the very center of this earth—the Capital City, if you please. It was the bright ray of hope in the darkest hour of these people. They sang that the entire earth would be ruled over by this One who was to come. Even nature would be affected. The desert would blossom as the rose. The sun, moon and stars would be affected. Just as the events that took place in Bethlehem made it outshine all the other thousands of cities of Judah, so is this little planet of ours made the jewel of the great universe of God—for here is where the glory of God was to break! May I say that this kingdom is a progressive and growing thing! Isaiah said: Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:7) My own point of view—and like many McGee theories, it may not be too good—is that this kingdom will increase and grow throughout eternity. That is going to be one of the glories of it. There will be nothing static or sterile about this kingdom at all; it will be characterized by constant growth! And I think it is defined in our petition, “Your kingdom come.” Your Will be Done on Earth as it is in Heaven “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” What does the Lord Jesus mean as He gives this petition? Is it that the will of God, which is all prevailing in heaven, shall ultimately prevail here upon this earth? Yes, His glory will shine forth on this earth! It is God’s intention that His will shall someday prevail here where rebellion has broken out and man lives in sin and unbelief. AMEN.

Week # 6

Weekly Pattern: Priorities

Prayers from the Bible:

Questions: These questions are (Agree/disagree) explain as much as you can.

1). The Kingdom of God is not a real earthly Kingdom, it’s a spiritual kingdom – Agree/Disagree
2). The Kingdom of God is something Jesus didn’t really talk about – Agree/Disagree
3). The Kingdom of God has not yet come. It will come when Jesus returns – Agree/Disagree
4). The Kingdom of God is something only church leaders can see – Agree/Disagree
5). The Kingdom of God is something all Christians are meant to build – Agree/Disagree
6). The Kingdom of God is as small as a mustard seed but stretches across the world – Agree/Disagree
7). The Kingdom of God is something Jesus said had arrived – Agree/Disagree
8). The kingdom of God is located in Jerusalem – Agree/Disagree

Weekly Reading Assignment: (Acts 11-12)

Weekly Song: (Matthew 26:30)

Weekly Praise: Praise the Lord

Let’s Hallow His name by rehearsing Who He is:

Ending Prayer:

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Bible Study: The Prayer Jesus Taught His Disciples Matthew 6:5-15 Week # 5 Beginning Prayer: Praise the Lord, today is Thanksgiving! Father God, we come to praising You and honoring You and thanking You and loving You for Who You are today in our lives; it’s a blessing to be able to know […]

Praise the Lord, today is Thanksgiving! Father God, we come to praising You and honoring You and thanking You and loving You for Who You are today in our lives; it’s a blessing to be able to know You, and honor You, and respect You as our Lord and Savior of the world. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in us as it is in Heaven. We love You Lord Jesus for coming to this earth and dying for our sin and making a way for us to come to the Father when we need too. Right now, Lord, we ask for a blessing on everyone we know and those we don’t know, so they can live a blessed life in You. This we pray in Jesus’ Mighty Name. AMEN.

Subject: The Lord’s Prayer: (Hallowed be Thy name) Continue:

. …Hallowed Be Your Name Now let us turn to the last great statement made in the introduction: “Hallowed be Your name.” More correctly translated, it should read, “Let Your name be made holy.”

The name of God stands for all that God is. When the Lord was leading the children of Israel out of Egypt through the wilderness, He sent His angel and told them, “I want you to obey Moses; do what he 11 tells you because My name is in him” (see Exodus 23:21). That means all that God is—all that God stands for—is in His name. There is a very interesting verse in Leviticus: “And whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death” (Leviticus 24:16). The name of God was so reverent to the children of Israel that they did not even pronounce it. In their long history they completely lost its pronunciation. Consequently, no one knows today the pronunciation of that mystical tetra grammaton, YHWH. We have it translated “Jehovah”—some say it is “Yahweh”—who is right? No one knows! And why do we not know? Because the name of God was so holy, so sacred, and demanded such reverence that the children of Israel dared not even pronounce it. In conservative circles today there is a familiarity with the name of God that ought not to be. You and I become too familiar with things that are sacred and holy, and we need to be very careful in this. It is tragic when a man or woman out on the street takes God’s name in vain—but the thing that is more tragic is the blasphemy of the sanctuary. And do you know what that is? It is the thing of which I am continually reminding myself. We who walk into the pulpit do so with such frequency that we become familiar with it. We can brush against holy and sacred things so constantly that they can become commonplace. When a guest speaker comes to our pulpit, I always observe his manner as he approaches the sacred desk. And you who come to the pew—you do well to be reverent in His presence in the house that has been dedicated to Him. God, deliver us from treating as commonplace the things that are sacred before You! But let us think upon the way in which you and I can make God’s name holy. Can we add to that which is already infinitely holy? Certainly not. Then what did our Lord mean by the statement, “Hallowed be Your name”? We are sure that He meant more than that we should arise in some Sunday morning service and repeat with the others, “Hallowed by Your name.” He meant that by our lives we are to make God’s name holy. There are two men whose names are mentioned in Genesis: One was a disgrace to the name of God, and the other commended the name of God. These two men had one characteristic in common—they always built an altar where they chose to dwell. When Abraham went into Canaan, a Canaanite passing by observed that they had a new neighbor for he had seen his altar. Everywhere Abraham went, he built an altar to God. And Abraham began to do business with the Canaanites who found him to be honest. They found that everything Abraham said invited their confidence. Finally they reached the conclusion that the God whom Abraham worshiped was a holy God, and surely the name of God was made holy in Canaan because of the life of Abraham. But when Jacob started out, he could not be trusted. Do not attempt to explain away the first part of his life, for it held only dishonor. Two things always marked the path over which he had gone: He had built an altar and he had defrauded someone. One day God met him as he was In-route—he was alone and God led him down by the brook Jabbok. And God told Jacob that he could not continue conducting himself in that manner, for God’s name must be made holy. And God caused the socket of Jacob’s leg to be dislocated. I believe that God will do that today for anyone of His children who is bringing dishonor to His name. Paul said to his people in that day, “…the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you…” (Romans 2:24). My fundamental friend, my premillennial brother, let us go to the top of yonder mountain where He gave the Sermon on the Mount—we need to go there. We must have men and women who name the name of God and whose lives correspond to it! I commented to a friend of mine, “If I ever leave the ministry—and there are times when I am tempted to do it—it will not be due to a loss of faith in the Book.” There was a time when I had doubts about the Bible, but today I do not have a single doubt; I am willing to stake the eternal destiny of my soul upon the accuracy of the Bible. I believe it with all my heart. If I ever leave the ministry, it will be because of leaders who profess to know the name of God but blaspheme that name in their living. Go to the top of the mountain and listen as He reveals His will. I know we are not saved by the Sermon on the Mount, but you and I can make His name holy by reading it and abiding therein. I know it is a ministry of condemnation, but it will cause us to flee to Jesus for refuge, for salvation, deliverance, and power; and we will become God’s child by faith in Jesus Christ that we might be enabled to make His name holy in our living. Are you hallowing God’s name in your daily life?

Week # 5

Prayers from the Bible:

Weekly Pattern: Praise

(This is our last week of our praise pattern)

Questions:

1). Do you honor God’s Name, explain?

2). What do Jehovah means?

3). Do you think its wrong to honor God’s Name

4). Why must we honor God’s Name as we do Jesus’ Name?

5). What Name are we saved by?

6). Why is so much confession when it comes to honoring God’s Name as we do Jesus’ Name?

7). Our faith should be in Who?

8). Is honoring God’s Name a religion or a way to worship Him as the only true God?

Like this:

Father God, I come into your presence so aware of my human frailty and yet overwhelmed by your love for me. I thank you that there is no human experience that I might walk through where your love cannot reach me. If I climb the highest mountain you are there and yet if I find myself in the darkest valley of my life, you are there. Teach me today to love you more. Help me to rest in that love that asks nothing more than the simple trusting heart of a child. Father, as we study on You love bless us to remember that You first loved us. Give us this day our daily bread as we study this lesson on love. We praise and thank You for all You have done for us. Let the words of our mouth and the meditation of our heart be accepted in You sight O Lord, our help and our strength. In Jesus name, Amen

The addition of faith revolutionizes the power of love. (Online Study)

The beautiful ballroom of the Marriott Hotel in Chicago was crowded to capacity with more than 1,300 college students and Campus Crusade staff members. I explained one of the most exciting spiritual discoveries that I had ever made — how to love by faith.

For years I had spoken on the subject of love. I had a simple 4-point outline:

God loves you unconditionally.

You are commanded to love others — God, your neighbors, your enemies.

You are incapable of loving others in your own strength.

You can love others with God’s love.

But, as in the case of most sermons on love, something was missing. Then some years ago, in an early hour of the morning, I was awakened from a deep sleep. I knew that God had something to say to me. I felt impressed to get up, open my Bible and kneel to read and pray. What I discovered during the next 2 hours has since enriched my life and the lives of tens of thousands of others. I had learned how to love. With this discovery, God gave me the command to share this wonderful truth with Christians around the world. In that life-changing time of fellowship with the Lord, I was given a fifth point for my sermon on love — we love by faith. Love is the greatest thing in the world — the greatest privilege and power known to man. Its emphasis in life and word changed the course of history as the first-century Christians demonstrated a quality of life never before witnessed on this earth. The Greeks, Romans, Gentiles, and Jews hated one another. The very idea of love and self-sacrifice was foreign to their thinking. When they observed Christians from many nations, with different languages and cultures, actually loving one another and sacrificing to help each other, they responded in amazement, “Behold, how these people love one another!”

I challenged the students at the conference to become part of a revolution of love. I suggested that they make a list of all the individuals they did not like and begin to love them by faith.

Early the next morning, a young woman with sparkling eyes and face aglow said to me, “My life was changed last night. For many years I have hated my parents. I haven’t seen them since I was 17, and now I am 22. I left home as a result of a quarrel 5 years ago and haven’t written or talked to them since, though they have tried repeatedly to encourage me to return home. I determined that I would never see them again. I hated them.

“Before becoming a Christian a few months ago,” she continued, “I had become a drug addict, a dope pusher and a prostitute. Last night you told me how to love my parents, and I could hardly wait to get out of that meeting and call them. Can you believe it? I now really love them with God’s kind of love and can hardly wait to see them.”

Everybody wants to be loved. Most psychologists agree that man’s greatest need is to love and be loved. No barrier can withstand the mighty force of love.

There are 3 Greek words translated into the one English word “love”; eros, which suggests sensual desire — it does not appear in the New Testament; phileo, which is used for friendship or love of one’s friends or relatives — it conveys a sense of loving someone because he is worthy of love; and agape, which is God’s love: the purest, deepest kind of love — it is expressed not through mere emotions but as an act of one’s will.

Agapeis God’s supernatural, unconditional love for you revealed supremely through our Lord’s death on the cross for our sins. It is the supernatural love He wants to produce in you and through you to others, by His Holy Spirit. Agape love is given because of the character of the person loving rather than because of the worthiness of the object of that love. Sometimes it is love “in spite of” rather than “because of.”

God underscores the importance of this kind of love through the inspired pen of the apostle Paul, as recorded in 1 Corinthians 13. In this beautiful and remarkable passage of Scripture, Paul writes that, apart from love, anything that you might do for God or others is of no value. Consider these words:

If I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them, and could speak in every language there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn’t love others, I would only be making noise.

If I had the gift of prophecy and knew all about what is going to happen in the future, knew everything about everything, but didn’t love others, what good would it do? Even If I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain and make it move, I would still be worth nothing at all without love.

If I gave everything I have to poor people, and if I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever.

In other words, no matter what you do for God and for others, it is of no value unless you are motivated by God’s love.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, we live in a world where the security we once seemed to enjoy has been eroded right away and so many dark clouds of unknowing seen to be looming on the future’s unpredictable horizon – and all that seemed to be so secure and reliable has turned to sawdust in our hands and evaporated like the morning mist. But Lord we praise Your name that we can entrust our future in Your safe-keeping, knowing that Your love surrounds us and that Your grace is sufficient.. no matter how black the circumstances of life may appear. Thank You Lord that You hold the world in the palm of Your hand, and nothing can snatch us from that secure position in Him. Thank You that we are accepted in the beloved and loved by the Father and thank You Lord that no danger may overtake any of Your children, that is not permitted by You – and which will not be used to fulfill a just and glorious purpose. Keep our hearts from unnecessary fretting or worry and in the power of the Holy Spirit may we build ourselves up in your most holy faith.. by praying in spirit and truth and walking the way of righteousness. May we learn day by day to prevent our eyes from focusing on the trials and tribulations that are coming on the earth – and rather help us to look to Jesus, knowing that in all things He is the victor – and we are securely positioned in Him – through time and into eternity…Thank You in Jesus name, Amen

1). List and discuss the characteristics of God’s love found in 1 Corinthians 13.

2). Name a synonym for or give a short description of each characteristic. Share what each quality means to you.

3). Discuss ways in which the church as a body of Christian believers can express its love for God and one another.

Quiz:

1) Which did Jesus say was the most important of all God’s commandments?

Love God with all your heart and soul.

Love your neighbor as yourself.

Do not murder.

Honor your father and mother.

Read verses that provide guidance on topics relating to love such as; relationships, marriage, family, children, strength, and love of others. The Bible says that God is love, which makes it the perfect source to learn how to love others, even those who are difficult for us to. Our world has skewed the meaning of true love but God’s Word remains a steadfast, true source of knowledge on how to love. Read the below scripture from the Holy Bible about love in relation to God, Jesus Christ, and the Christian faith and begin seeing the change in your heart and mind!